Abstract
Here we provide evidence to support an extension of the recognized distributional range of the Mountain Elaenia (Elaenia frantzii) to include southern Mexico. We collected two specimens in breeding condition in northwestern Sierra Norte de Chiapas, Mexico. Morphologic and genetic evidence support their identity as Elaenia frantzii. We compared environmental parameters of records across the entire geographic range of the species to those at the northern Chiapas survey site and found no climatic differences among localities.
Highlights
The Mountain Elaenia (Elaenia frantzii) is a small New World flycatcher that breeds in the high elevation forests of Central America and northern South America and is known to move seasonally to lower elevations (Stiles & Skutch, 1989)
We constrained our examination of ecological parameters to the area accessible to the species (Peterson et al, 2011). We considered this to be the area from the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, Mexico, to northwestern South America including the Andes Mountains from Ecuador to Northern Venezuela, Figure 2 Principal components plot of environmental parameters at sites of Elaenia frantzii records
The records of E. frantzii closest to Mexico along the land axis of Central America are in southwestern Guatemala (CLO:ML:140002, USNM:Birds:69831, USNM:Birds:80404: Table 1)
Summary
The Mountain Elaenia (Elaenia frantzii) is a small New World flycatcher that breeds in the high elevation forests of Central America and northern South America and is known to move seasonally to lower elevations (Stiles & Skutch, 1989). Its distribution has previously been reported to include isolated populations extending from Colombia and Venezuela as far north as north-central Guatemala (Land, 1970; Howell & Webb, 1995; Eisermann & Avendano, 2007), but it has not been documented in Mexico (Peterson & Chalif, 1973; Hosner, 2004). How to cite this article Hanna et al (2016), Phylogenetic and morphologic evidence confirm the presence of a new montane cloud forest associated bird species in Mexico, the Mountain Elaenia (Elaenia frantzii; Aves: Passeriformes: Tyrannidae). We investigated environmental parameters from the previously known distribution of E. frantzii and compared them with those present in southern Mexico to assess the likelihood that suitable conditions exist in southern Mexico to support a resident population of this species
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
